![Hnaaf-ramp-1944](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Hnaaf-ramp-1944.jpg)
Harris Neck Army Airfield is an abandoned military airfield located in what is now the
Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge
Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1962. It consists of of saltwater marsh, grassland, mixed deciduous woods, and cropland located on an abandoned military airfield in McIntosh County, Georgia, north of the intersection of ...
,
McIntosh County,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
. It is located north of the intersection of Route 131 and Harris Neck Airport Road, about southwest of
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...
.
History
Early years
Harris Neck is a coastal peninsula located south of
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...
in McIntosh County. The nearest town is South Newport, six miles (10 km) to the west. Originally named Dickinson's Neck, the peninsula was renamed when William Thomas Harris became the principal land owner in the mid 18th century.
The original Harris Neck airfield was built in 1930 and leased from Courtney Thorpe by the US Dept. of Commerce. It was named "Harris Neck Intermediate Field Site #8", it was an emergency airfield for commercial and airmail planes on the
Richmond-
Jacksonville
Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...
air route. The field consisted of a cross-shaped
sod
Sod, also known as turf, is the upper layer of soil with the grass growing on it that is often harvested into rolls.
In Australian and British English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', and the word "sod" is limited mainly to agricult ...
parcel, with two sod runways 2,600' east/west & 2,550' north/south. The emergency field was illuminated and included an 81 foot tall beacon tower, but offered only emergency services to pilots. Harris Neck Site 8 airfield was secured by an army detachment from Hunter airfield in Savannah on Dec. 7, 1941 and closed to the public on 1 January 1942 when the
Civil Air Patrol began anti-submarine flights. It was closed for military use in 1943 when the new expanded military airfield was opened a half-mile north. There is no trace of the CAA airfield existence today but its outline by property fencing on the southern boundary.
Building begins
In mid-1942, the
Army Air Force
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
decided to build a base at Harris Neck. The land was expropriated and families were given two weeks to remove themselves. At the time of transfer the black families (who owned 1,102 acres) were given an average of $26.90 per acre and the white families (who owned 1,532 acres) were given an average of $37.31 per acre. This included the Livingston estate which included the Lorillard mansion and a deep-water dock.
[Dewan, Shaila]
Black Landowners Fight to Reclaim Georgia Home.
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
.'' June 30, 2010. Construction was started on 15 July 1942 by the
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
First Air Force. The original plan provided for two runways. The Army's decision to add a third runway required the acquisition of additional land. A detachment of men from the 855th Guard Squadron, stationed at
Hunter Army Air Field
Hunter Army Airfield , located in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is a military airfield and subordinate installation to Fort Stewart located in Hinesville, Georgia.
Hunter features a runway that is 11,375 feet (3,468 m) long and an aircr ...
occupied the Harris Neck facility on 7 December 1942. It was activated on 28 January 1943 as an auxiliary of
Dale Mabry Army Airfield
Dale Mabry Army Airfield, was a World War II United States Army Air Force located at the Dale Mabry Field airport in Tallahassee, Florida. The military airfield closed in 1946 and the airport was returned to civil use.
History
The military u ...
in
Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the populatio ...
.
In March 1943, the Army enlarged the project to provide facilities for one dive-bomber squadron of 24 airplanes and an oversized fighter Replacement Training Unit of 36 aircraft. The increase necessitated enlarging the parking apron by . Accommodations were eventually provided for 120 officers and 400 enlisted men. Construction totaled eleven prefabricated buildings and included a 37×99 ft combination theater, a recreation building and chapel, a 20×100 ft combination service club and exchange, and a 20×60 ft office building. The three concrete runways were laid out in a triangle that enclosed 15 revetments. Livingston House, a former private residence, served as the officer's club. Since the closest town of any significance,
Brunswick was away, one might surmise that the officer's club must have gotten a lot of use. Motion pictures were shown in the post theater three nights a week.
Training, the navy and decay
Harris Neck AAF was used primarily for the training of fighter pilots. Numerous units would rotate through for training sessions. It was home to the single-seat Bell
P-39 Airacobra
The Bell P-39 Airacobra is a fighter produced by Bell Aircraft for the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. It was one of the principal American fighters in service when the United States entered combat. The P-39 was used by the ...
, which was replaced during February, 1944, by the Curtiss
P-40E Kittyhawk.
Known units assigned to the airfield were:
*
499th Fighter-Bomber Squadron
The 499th Fighter-Bomber Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 85th Fighter-Bomber Group stationed at Waycross Army Airfield, Georgia. It was inactivated on 1 May 1944.
History
Participated ...
(Fighter, Replacement Training), 20 September-13 December 1943
*
500th Fighter-Bomber Squadron
The 500th Fighter-Bomber Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 85th Fighter-Bomber Group stationed at Harris Neck Army Air Field, 1eorgia. It was inactivated on 1 May 1944.
History
Participa ...
(Fighter, Replacement Training), 13 December 1943-1 May 1944
A typical complement of aircraft consisted of 32 P-40s and five
BT-13
The Vultee BT-13 Valiant is an American World War II-era basic (a category between primary and advanced) trainer aircraft built by Vultee Aircraft for the United States Army Air Corps, and later US Army Air Forces. A subsequent variant of the ...
s. In March 1944, a
Noorduyn UC-64, was also assigned to the airfield. Both squadrons were assigned to the
85th Fighter-Bomber Group at
Waycross AAF, Georgia.
The 86th FBG was inactivated at Waycross AAF and The 346th Army Air Force Base Unit (Replacement Training Unit, Fighter), was activated on 1 May 1944. Pilots receiving training were normally organized into two classes, (an upper and a lower), of thirty pilots each. Synthetic training devices present included two Link trainers, two Gunairstructors, and one deflection gunnery trainer. The airfield ended its training mission and was assigned to
Air Technical Service Command, becoming a sub-base of
Statesboro AAF on 31 December 1944.
On 5 January 1945, the airfield was turned over to the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
and remained under its control until 1962. It was listed as Harris Neck OLF and as a sub-base of
Glynco NAS in
Brunswick, Georgia. It was restricted in its military use, as it was closed to all traffic except on prior approval.
In October 1946, the War Assets Administration deeded the of the Harris Neck airbase to McIntosh County for use as a county airport. The venture was doomed before it even started. To successfully operate an airport, there must be a need. Harris Neck Airfield is in the middle of nowhere. The population of McIntosh County totaled only 5,200 in 1940. During the summer of 1949, several of the former Army buildings were discovered to have been stripped of useful equipment. Local law enforcement made several arrests.
Due to county mismanagement of the land resources, Harris Neck Airport was transferred at some point to the
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...
. The property was then turned over to the US Bureau of Sport Fisheries & Wildlife (forerunner of the USFWS) in 1962. That is presumably when the airfield was closed. The property was then declared a migratory bird refuge.
The modern era
Today, remnants of cracked and vegetated mile-long asphalt runways, taxiways, munitions bunker and revetments are evidence that the area was once an airfield. The water fountain and pool near Thomas Landing were dependencies of Livingston House, formerly the estate of Pierre Llorilard.
Former residents of the displaced community and their descendants are attempting to work out a compromise with the federal government to allow them to return to their land, without significantly disrupting the wildlife refuge.
See also
*
Georgia World War II Army Airfields
During World War II, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) established numerous airfields in Georgia for antisubmarine defense in the Gulf of Mexico and for training pilots and aircrews of USAAF fighters and bombers.
Most of these airfields we ...
References
* Shettle, M. L. (2005), Georgia's Army Airfields of World War II.
* Maurer, Maurer (1983). Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. .
*
External links
Current-day photos of Harris Neck Army Airfield
{{USAAF 1st Air Force World War II
1942 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)
Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Georgia (U.S. state)
Buildings and structures in McIntosh County, Georgia
1962 disestablishments in Georgia (U.S. state)